Kaohsiung, Aug. 10 (CNA) Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu expressed gratitude to the Executive Yuan on Sunday for its allocation of funds to reconstruct the areas of her city that were torn by a series of deadly gas explosions late last month. During an inspection of the disaster zone after heavy rain earlier in the day, Chen thanked Premier Jiang Yi-huah for helping to obtain NT$1.6 billion (US$53.3 million) in central government funds to rebuild the devastated downtown area. Chen, a member of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party, also said that as soon as the rain stops she will travel north to Taipei for a meeting with Jiang to discuss the issue of the petrochemical pipeline network that runs under Kaohsiung. The city, home to dozens of petrochemical factories, was rocked on July 31 by a series of blasts that are believed to have been caused by a leaking underground propylene pipeline. At least 30 people were killed and more than 300 injured in the explosions that ripped through the streets just before midnight. The situation has been exacerbated by heavy rain that has been drenching Kaohsiung since Saturday night as a result of a strong moist southwesterly front, Chen said. (By Wang Shwu-fen and Elizabeth Hsu)